Regression Infection
by Kanan
Summary: Uhoh! Watari is at it again, and this time, he's got Hisoka as his guineapig, but it wasn't intentional. Now, Hisoka is regressing, not only mentally, but physically as well! Can the YNM crew find a cure before Hisoka loses himself in time?
1. Chapter 1

Regression Infection!

As all know, Yutaka Watari loves to do wacky experiments, even though it isn't his field of expertise! He has devised a sex change potion, which turned out to be a regression potion, and some weird way to turn him and one of his co-workers invisible, but he could never perfect his sex change potion! Will he do it this time?

Hisoka took the liberty to drop off the mail around the department, since he had convinced Tsuzuki to do his own work and he, himself, had already finished. He knocked on Watari's door and silently entered. The doctor was fiddling with a weird machine on his table, not listening to anything. Hisoka walked over and knocked on the table and Watari looked up, finally and removed his goggles.

"Ah, bon! Good morning!"

"Morning. I've got your mail here."

"Oh good!"

"Hey, what did you create this time?"

"It's a new way to test my sex change potion, by way of vapor inhalation! The potion isn't perfected yet, but I'll get it, eventually!"

"Did… you intend for it to look so weird?"

"Yes, actually! I least I got THAT part right! And when the potion is done, would you like to test it for me?"

"I'd rather not. Already I've got two crazed out girls who would just love to see me in a pink house dress. If that's all, I should get going."

"Wait! Let me show you how it works first, please?"

"….sure."

Watari opened up a side compartment and then took out a small vial of something.

"The potion will come in a vial like this one, and then you put it in here like this! See?"

"Then what?"

"Then, you have to press the button on the side, but I have yet to get it to work, yet!"

Watari lightly hit his fist on the top of the machine, and then it made a weird noise. A vapor seeped from it and then a lot came out as the thing exploded. Watari took a large step back and covered his mouth with a handkerchief.

"Bon! Step back and don't breathe in the smoke!"

Hisoka was coughing and hadn't moved much, and so Watari got close and pulled Hisoka out of the room. The window was open, so the smoke vented quickly. Watari set Hisoka on the floor against the wall as the boy coughed some more and slowly opened his eyes.

"Bon? Oh thank goodness you're all right! You worried me there? Tell, me, did you breathe any of it in?"

"I don't think so."

"Even so, I need to check you over."

Tsuzuki was just entering that hall as he saw Watari lift up Hisoka's shirt. He got the wrong idea until he saw a stethoscope. Watari put the cold end to Hisoka's chest and Hisoka heaved. Tsuzuki ran over as quickly as he could and fell to Hisoka's side.

"Hisoka? Watari, what happened?"

"It's nothing serious. I was explaining a new machine and it exploded and let a bunch of gas out. Bon looks all right, though. It doesn't look like he inhaled very much. He should experience no symptoms at all."

The men helped Hisoka stand up and he leaned against Tsuzuki, some.

"How do you feel, Hisoka?"

"Oh, just perfect, except that I still can't breathe…"

"That should pass quickly."

"Next time you want to show someone an untested machine, Watari, please don't call me."

"Hey, lets go get you some water, Hisoka."

"Sounds good."

Hisoka got a glass of water and returned to work with Tsuzuki, but he was still coughing quite a bit. He went home and didn't have an appetite to eat, so he went strait to bed and dreamt about what happened that day.

The next day, Hisoka returned to work feeling a lot better than the day before and as he passed the coffee room, he got the strangest craving for oatmeal and apple juice. He got his breakfast and went to his office. Tsuzuki, obviously, wasn't there yet, so he had time to get a little work done. But, as he went to get on his chair, he found it a bit strange. He didn't have problems with it, but it seemed as though he felt shorter. Tsuzuki then came in holding a lot of sweets with him, as usual. Hisoka was so angry that Tsuzuki kept doing that and scaring him, even though he was used to it and it really didn't bother him. He felt the sudden urge to get all in his face and yell, and so he did. He stood up, marched over to Tsuzuki, but just as he was about to yell, he looked up. Tsuzuki had looked a lot taller that day than he did the day before.

"Tsuzuki… did you grow a lot last night?"

"No. But now that you mention it, this seems a bit weird. I remember that you went all the way up to my upper chest, and now you don't. Hisoka… I think you… shrank some."


	2. Chapter 2

Part 2:

Hisoka went to bed after work and was tossing and turning all through the night. Unknown to him, Tsuzuki had flown by a few times during the night and looked into his window to check on him. In the morning, though, Tsuzuki walked in, late as usual, and acted as if nothing was wrong. However, he was surprised to find that Hisoka was not in his office, but Watari and Tatsumi were.

"Huh? What's going on?"  
"Tsuzuki, have you seen Kurosaki-kun yet today?"

"Hisoka? No, I'm afraid not. Why?"

"He hasn't come in for work."

"No?"

Tatsumi pushed up his glasses and gave out a hard stare.

"I received a call from him early this morning, saying that for reasons beyond his control, he could not come in. After what Watari told me about yesterday, we feel we should be concerned for Kurosaki-kun's safety."

"We tried to contact Bon a number of times but he wouldn't answer the phone."

"Do you think Hisoka is in some sort of trouble!"

"We can't be sure until we investigate."

"Tsuzuki, Watari, I want you both to go over to Kurosaki-kun's place and bring him back here."

"Understood."

"Okay, lets go."

In an instant, they teleported right outside Hisoka's door.

"Um, why didn't we just teleport ourselves inside?"

"Because, it would have been rude to enter without Hisoka's permission!"

Tsuzuki gave the door a knock, but there was no reply. They stood outside the door for a number of minutes, then decided to simply teleport in. Hisoka's appartment was spacious, but didn't have a lot inside it. It was plain and boring, but there was a calming feel to it.

"Bon? Are you home?"

"Hisoka?"

From beyond Hisoka's bedroom door, the two heard a muffled voice. Tsuzuki got up close to it and knocked.

"Hisoka?"

"What do you want?"

"We didn't see you at work and were told to pick you up. You…didn't answer the door, so we let ourselves in."

"Fine, now leave."

"We can't. Tatsumi told us to-"

"Go away!"

"Hisoka…? What's wrong with you?"

"…"

"If something is wrong, you can tell me."

"Tsuzuki… I can't come out…"

"Hm? Why not?"

Hisoka murmured something, but Tsuzuki couldn't hear him. So, he slowly let himself in and spotted Hisoka sitting amongst the messed blankets on his bed.

"Hisoka?"

"Tsuzuki, there's something wrong with me."

"Whatever it is, we can take care of it back at the office."

"I can't go there."

"Why not?"

"…My clothes wont fit me right."

"Oh…"

Tsuzuki froze for a minute, but then he started laughing. Hisoka was in front of him in moments. His clothes just barely hung on him, and he definitely looked smaller than before. He hit Tsuzuki on the head, but…it didn't hurt him.

Meifu:

On their way to the office, they stopped at the storeroom where they picked up clothes that would fit Hisoka. Now, in the conference room, Tatsumi, Konoe, Tsuzuki, the Gushoshin, and a very sorry Watari sat at the table staring at a younger Hisoka.

"Tell me what the deal is. Why is Kurosaki getting shorter?"

"I don't know how I could get my sex change potion so horribly wrong! I was showing him how it should work by way of vapor inhalation, but it went off when it wasn't supposed to. I thought he had avoided breathing it in, but I was wrong."

"So, how short is he going to get?"

"It's not only his size. According to the tests I ran earlier, Hisoka is fully regressing. He'll keep getting younger and younger."

"What? This can't be happening! Change me back right now!"

"Calm down, little one. We'll find a solution. WONT we, Watari?"

"I'll try my best, but it may take time."

Tsuzuki raised his hand.

"Watari, how quickly will Hisoka age, and when will it stop?"

"I'm afraid it isn't that simple a thing. He'll probably take a few days to age a year, but as time goes on, it may speed up his regression."

"And…what about when he reaches the end, when he regresses as far as he can?"

"He'll probably fade away."

The look on Hisoka's face was filled with fear and disbelief. He ran at Watari and held the man's shirt, as high up as he could reach. He had tears in his eyes as he yelled at him.

"I wont believe any of this! It's not true!"

"Bon."

"No! Change me back, right now! Fix me!"

Tsuzuki grabbed up Hisoka and pulled him away, cooing him into calmness.

"Well, he can't work while he's like this, so what will we do with him?"

"Tsuzuki, I'm sure, would be happy to watch him. Wouldn't you?"

"Uh, well… I don't know anything about taking care of children!"

"You'll do just fine. Now, take little Hisoka back to your office, Tsuzuki."

"…Yes sir, Mr. Tatsumi…"

Tsuzuki tried to lead Hisoka out of the room by the hand, but the child went back into his moody attitude and refused to let Tsuzuki touch him. He was so hard to deal with, Tsuzuki though. When they got back to their office, Tsuzuki watched as Hisoka climbed onto his chair and set his head down on his desk, and the older man started on his paperwork, and Hisoka's. After a few hours, Tsuzuki looked up to the clock. Noon. He set down his pen and smiled at Hisoka.

"It's lunch time, now, Hisoka. Are you hungry?"

"No. Leave me alone."

"Hisoka, little kids need to eat, and you're no exception. Now, what are you hungry for?"

"…"

Tsuzuki signed as he stood up and started for the door. Then, through the wood of the desk, Hisoka finally spoke.

"I…could eat a sandwich."

Tsuzuki smiled.

"How is turkey and ham with mayonnaise?"

"Fine."


	3. Chapter 3

Watari worked long into each night as he tried to find an antidote for his younger coworker, and a week had already passed by. He stopped and wiped away the sweat on his brow. The Gushoushin twins were also there helping him, and the one wearing the red hat looked up at him.

"Mr. Watari… you don't think Hisoka will fade away, do you?"

Watari gave him a sad glance, but then smiled his usual.

"No way! I swear I'll find a cure for Bon! No worries now!"

"But, he's already at age nine! We don't have a lot of time left!"

"I know. He's begun to regress by the day… but as long as we work hard, we can do this! Besides, we may even get a raise like Tsuzuki did if we do a good enough job!"

It was true. Tatsumi had given Tsuzuki a raise so he could afford to take care of himself and the much younger Hisoka, who, at that moment, awoke with a scare in Tsuzuki's spare bedroom. It was very late at night when he woke up, and the whole room was dark. He sobbed loudly and climbed off his bed and walked down the hall. Tsuzuki had fallen asleep in an awkward position on the bed in his own room, but awoke quickly when he heard his door open. He sat up abruptly and stared at the little boy standing in his doorway. Hisoka's face was twisted in emotional pain and tears streamed down his face and rimmed his eyes.

Tsuzuki got off his bed and knelt by the child. He moved Hisoka's hair out of his face and helped the boy wash away his tears. He had calm eyes, and he knew it calmed Hisoka just to peer into them, and he then spoke in a quiet voice, as not to scare the child, or put him through any more torment. Being a child, Tsuzuki could have imagined that his barriers wouldn't be nearly as strong as normal.

"What's wrong, little one?"

"…"  
"Come now… no more tears for you. You can tell big brother Tsuzuki what is wrong."

"…I-I had a bad dream…"

"A bad dream? Aww… you poor thing! You know what?"

So cutely, Hisoka shook his head, not understanding.

"Bad dreams… calls for ice cream! I promise it will make you all better."

Tsuzuki led the boy into the kitchen and got out all four containers of ice cream he had and two small spoons. He sat across the boy at the table on the floor (it's one of those tables that are short and go on the floor) and he waited for the boy to eat, but he did not right away.

"What's the matter?"

"…Mom said I can't have ice cream…"

"Yeah? Well, I wont tell her if you wont!"

"…I… I can have any kind?"

"That's right! Dig in!"

Finally, the boy calmed down and started to eat some vanilla ice cream. As Tsuzuki worked on some sherbert, he glared into his mind, where he tried to imagine the evil woman who could have dared call herself Hisoka's mother. How could there be such a woman that would not allow her only child to eat ice cream, he thought. He often thought, while Hisoka wasn't around, what he would do to the woman had he ever met her. But, he broke out of those thoughts as he spotted two glimmering green eyes staring up at him with a finger in his mouth. He was no doubt staring at the man's tub of ice cream. Tsuzuki held it out so the boy could take some.

"Do you want any? Feel free!"

"Sankyuu…. Um…"

"Yes?"

"What were you just thinking about? You seemed real mad about it…"

Tsuzuki mentally cursed himself. Hisoka was not able to block out his feelings, and anger was one emotion that often cut deeply into him even when he was sixteen. Instead of thinking on it more, he smiled sweetly again and patted the child on the head. Then, as he looked at the mess that was his partner, he became thankful that the mess was only on the boy's hands and face. A few days earlier, he had the… weird experience of helping his partner bathe himself… It was indeed a disturbingly educational experience.

"Big brother?"  
"Oh, it was nothing, really, little Hisoka! Go ahead and keep eating!"

"…I'm full now…"

Tsuzuki frowned again. He was very concerned at how little the boy could eat, and it was even less now than when he was older. But the young shinigami yawned and Tsuzuki got the hint. He cleaned up the mess, then the one on the table and put things away. Then, he picked the boy up in his arms. He started towards Hisoka's designated room, but the death grip the kid had around his neck suggested that he wasn't planning on letting go any time soon, so he just returned to his own room. He laid down by the child and stayed awake until he knew the other could sleep soundly.

Two days later…

Tsuzuki was in his room, getting ready for work.

"Hisoka! Why don't we go and pick up breakfast on the way to work? I know a good pancake place! And I KNOW how much you like pancakes!"

There was no answer. He must have just been playing, like any seven year old would do, he thought. But then, as he started to tie his neck tie, he heard a crash coming from the living room. He immediately rushed out and saw Hisoka collapsed onto the floor.

"Hisoka? Hisoka!"

The child was thin, and Tsuzuki held him very carefully, as not to break him, as he thought was possible. He discarded his tie and teleported to Meifu. There, Hisoka was put in a bed with an IV feeding him nutrients that he could not have ingested otherwise. Tsuzuki stood outside the viewing window staring at Hisoka like a worried parent- all the while, thinking of how his real parents would have worried so much as himself about the boy. Tatsumi watched him for a while, and then caught the man by the shoulder, as he was about to fall.

"You need rest, my friend. You can't keep going on like you have; it isn't healthy."

"I know, but, Hisoka…"

"We're taking care of him…"

Tatsumi led Tsuzuki to a room with a warm bed and let the man lay down on it diagonally. He took off his shoes and then helped the-dare I say- older man to lay down properly, and tucked him in.

"Hisoka…"

"You really are worried about him, but I assure you, I will watch over him in your absence. I will not let anything happen to the boy. I will love him and care for him as his father would."

"Thank you, Tatsumi…."

Tsuzuki drifted off into sleep, leaving a name on his mind.

"Hisoka…."

In Watari's lab, he finally let out a quiet gasp. Gushousin looked over and looked at the screen.

"I… I think I may have found it!"

"Good! It's about time!"

"Now, lets make the actual potion!"

"Right!"


	4. Chapter 4

When Hisoka was recovering, he cried most of the time. He didn't know Tatsumi as well as he knew Tsuzuki, and he just wanted him. He only stopped crying when Tsuzuki was rested and came to pick him up. But, by then, the boy had regressed to age five, and could barely say his name right. He hoped Watari would have that potion done soon. Tatsumi could sense the tension rising, and patted Tsuzuki on the back.

"Why don't you take him for a walk?"

--

Hijiri Manase was not expecting to receive a call from a certain amethyst-eyed shinigami, but when he did he jumped up and down and rushed out the door. On the phone, Tsuzuki said he wanted to hang out, and that he had a small problem. Hijiri didn't know whether he should be happy or worried. But, by the time he got to the park, and Tsuzuki came into view he knew he should be happy.

Tsuzuki waved and Hijiri ran towards him. Funny, he didn't see Hisoka nearby. Still, he ignored that and jumped up into a hug when he got there. Tsuzuki hugged back, and smiled.

"Hijiri, thanks for coming!"

"No problem! I wouldn't miss hanging out with you for the world!"

"Thanks! It really has been too long…"

Then, shy little Hisoka came out from behind Tsuzuki and looked at Hijiri. The other boy looked at him and smiled. He held out his hand to shake, but the boy stepped back.

"Hm? What's wrong little guy? Did you lose your mommy?"

"Mm…"

"Um, Hijiri?"

"Yeah, Tsuzuki?"

"You remember what I said on the phone… about having a problem with my partner?"

"Oh yeah…"

"Well, …he's it."

Hijiri raised an eyebrow and took another long look at the kid as he backed up and grabbed onto Tsuzuki's pant leg.

"'Suki? Who's dat?"

Hijiri fell over in surprise. Once he was able to speak, he pointed a shaky finger at the kid and Tsuzuki knelt down by the boy, so he was eye-to-eye with both of them.

"T-that can't…be…"

"Hijiri… this is my partner, Hisoka…"

It took Tsuzuki a little while to explain the situation to Hijiri, but once it was out, the brunette student sympathized. At the time, Hisoka was playing with a small toy Tsuzuki got him. It was a teething ring, and he kept putting it in his mouth and then hitting it against the bench before putting it back into his mouth.

"Wow… at least he's a cute kid!"

"Yeah… that's Hisoka for you!"

"So, tell me… how do you plan on changing him back?"

"Watari is currently working on a solution, but I wonder if he can get it ready in time…"

The playful kid looked up at Tsuzuki and took the ring out of his mouth. Then, he smiled and handed the drool-covered toy to him. Tsuzuki accepted it, reluctantly, and wiped it off. They had done this routine five times that morning, and though he kept handing it over, he always wanted it back after. A second later, however, when he tried to hand it back, Hisoka shook his head, sticking his finger in his mouth.

"Hmm? Don't you want it back?"

Hisoka shook his head.

"Well, what do you want, then?"

Hisoka looked around and then took his wet finger out of his mouth and pointed to an ice cream stand.

"Oh, right! You must be starving! Hijiri, would you like some ice cream?"

"Sure! I'll pay for it, too!"

"Oh, you don't have to!"

"But it's not everyday I get to see you guys!"

The three of them walked over to the stand and ordered their cones.

"Hisoka looks REALLY hungry."

"Well, I'm not surprised. He had to have his stomach pumped the other day."

"Huh? What for?"

"He swallowed half a bag of marbles!"

"Ew… I just don't get how kids can do that. Sounds gross to me."

"Ditto. However, that's not nearly the worst thing he's tried to eat."

"Oh? I'm afraid to ask."

Hisoka held onto Tsuzuki' pant leg as the older people talked, content with his finger in his mouth, but he was soon becoming bored. Suddenly, a white butterfly flew about and he followed it with his eyes for a long time. When it flew around a corner, Hisoka was sad, and he let go of Tsuzuki to follow it. He waddled along for a while, and when it came in view again, he got excited and ran after it. He soon wandered into the tree area, and couldn't see Tsuzuki anymore. When he tried to run back the way he came, he tripped and fell. His little knee got scraped up and it made him cry.

"Aww… what's wrong, little one?"

Hisoka stopped crying for a moment and looked up into cold silver eyes. a man in a white suit knelt down by him, and Hisoka somehow remembered him and backed away.

"Oh, don't be frightened… you poor thing. Seems you've scratched yourself up. I may have a Band-Aid somewhere here."

Muraki looked through his coat, but when he finally found one and looked back, the scrape was already starting to slowly heal itself. Muraki had seen such healing powers before, and his eyes went slightly wide.

"My, my… what do we have here? How very interesting…"

--

"Sirs, your ice cream!"

"Thanks!"

Hijiri paid for the cones and Tsuzuki picked up his and Hisoka's. He turned to the side to give it to him, but the child was no longer there.

"Hisoka?"

"Huh? Hey! Where did Hisoka go?"

"Hisoka?"

It was then that Tsuzuki's sensitive hearing picked up the sound of a child crying and he ran off towards the cry with Hijiri on his tail. They rounded a few corners and found themselves in the woods.

"Hisoka!"

"'Suki…"

"There he is!"

Hijiri pointed out a small child sitting in the dirt, and Tsuzuki fell to his knees in front of the child. He grabbed onto his shoulder and spoke in a loud, worried tone.

"Hisoka, don't ever run off like that ever again, do you hear me! You scared me half to death!"

"Sowwy…'Suki…sowwy…!"

Tsuzuki couldn't stay mad at him, and he smoothed the boy's hair back out of his face. The boy was sniffling, and Tsuzuki assured him that he wasn't mad anymore. Then, Hijiri pointed out the healing scratch, and Hisoka lifted his arms up as the other picked him up. The rest of the day was mostly uneventful, but that night…


	5. Chapter 5

Hisoka was quiet and calm on the walk down the bustling streets, unlike his usual sensitive self. In fact, the only thing there was to keep him calm was the ice cream Hijiri had bought him, and the fact that Tsuzuki was right beside him. Hisoka clung to his pant leg cheerfully, as he wasn't tall enough to reach his hand. As for his partner, Tsuzuki was still worried. The trip to the park seemed to make the boy happy, as well as meeting a new friend, but even as they walked, he could feel Hisoka's lifeforce weaken, as his body regressed.

Several emotions whirled around in his head, and he just couldn't sort them all out at once. He was sore at Watari for getting Hisoka into this mess, but he knew it was not the scientists' intention to do so. He was worried about Hisoka, especially since he'd been in so much trouble over the past few days. And also, he was angry at himself, for not being there in time to save his partner from such a predicament, and for not being able to do anything but stand and watch it all happen. As the young child looked up at him with his face shining joy, Tsuzuki looked as if he was going to cry.

Hijiri was not oblivious to this, as he had been observing everything about his friend's actions and expressions up to that point. So, when Tsuzuki's head started going down, Hijiri's hand went up and set down on the man's shoulder. The older shinigami turned his head to look at the Hisoka look-alike, and Hijiri's comforting smile was enough to ease his worry, even a little.

"So… you're sure you don't mind, Hijiri?"

"No, of course not! Whatever I can do to help…!"

"Thank you."

Not too much time later, the three of them reached a decent apartment building, and Hijiri led them inside. The doorman greeted them, and Hisoka stared. He was a big man, with a thick beard and mustache, but Hisoka was scared of him, and clung to Tsuzuki more. They had gotten inside to the lobby when Tsuzuki noticed Hisoka's discomfort and he gladly picked the boy up before following his friend to the elevator. Though he liked walking around, Hisoka seemed to like the elevator more. Several times, he tried to lean away from Tsuzuki to push random buttons, but keeping him away from them soon got irritating. So, Tsuzuki pulled Hisoka up over his shoulder, instead.

The elevator opened and Hijiri took the lead again down the hall and around the corner. He stopped at his door, 322, and opened the door for the other two. Tsuzuki looked around, and noticed that it was pretty much the same as it had been the last time he had been there. Still white, still clean, and still smelling like daffodils. Apparently, Hijiri loved them. Hisoka also looked around, but he wasn't ready to be let down into the strange place. Though, it's not like Tsuzuki didn't try.

Hijiri helped Tsuzuki, by showing him around, and Hisoka didn't understand why they were talking about safety measures here ad there. He didn't even know what that meant. But what he did understand was…

"Okay…"

"Don't worry! You can trust me with him!"

Hold on! Hisoka thought to himself. Was his Tsuzuki going somewhere? Was he leaving him behind with a strange person in a strange place? When Tsuzuki tried to put him down again, Hisoka fought to stay in his arms. He was starting to cry, and Tsuzuki's heart ached with sorrow, but he wasn't sure he should be transporting Hisoka around so much. Hisoka pulled on Tsuzuki's jacket and his hair, but eventually, he was able to hand him over to Hijiri and take a few steps back.

"I'm sorry, Hisoka… I promise I'll come back soon!" he looked up. "I left the number for my cell by the phone. Call me if anything happens, okay?"

"Right… I'll take care of him! You go on now…!"

"Okay. Bye!"

And with that, he left through the door. Hijiri waited until Tsuzuki's footsteps could no longer be heard before setting Hisoka on the floor. At first, he tried to get Hisoka to stand, but he was pouting, and only decided to sit.

"Shuki…."

"Oh, Hisoka… come on, don't be like that! I'm not so bad to hang out with; don't you remember?"

He only continued to pout, staring at the door. Sighing, Hijiri moved to the kitchen, and started looking around. On the floor, Hisoka pouted, and cried a little, missing Tsuzuki. His little mind was riddles with questions of why Tsuzuki would abandon him like that… Was it because he wandered away in the park? Was it because he talked to that stranger? What was it? He was so confused and hurt, but in an instant, all those negative feelings were gone, as a sweet smell drifted to him.

Hisoka turned himself about only slightly and looked up to see Hijiri kneeling behind him, smiling. In his hand was a paper plate, and on that plate were little slices of bread with bright colored stuff on them. It smelled good, and Hisoka was starting to feel hungry again. So, after staring at the strange boy and the snack for a long time, he finally reached out his tiny hand and tried a piece.

Hijiri waited to see what kind of reaction he would get, and when the boy's eyes widened and a large smile appeared on his jelly-covered face, the older boy had to smile, too. Hisoka rose up his arms, and Hijiri picked the boy up, trying to avoid getting slimed by the boy's slobbery fingers, and brought him into the dining room to eat. He and Hisoka were FINALLY getting along, but would it last?

--

Back in Ju-Oh-Cho, Watari was working fervently, again, and this time, he had the worn-out Tsuzuki at his side, helping him. 003 hooted lightly from her perch on the top of a cabinet as she watched them. Watari hadn't slept in a good 2 days, and so his hair was a matted mess, but that was the least of his worries.

"So close…. It's so close now!"

The two of them were mixing chemicals as carefully as possible, and the first 3 attempts had failed. Each time they tried mixing the chemicals, it took over an hour, and both of them knew they couldn't afford to start over again. So, Watari held onto the vial of pink liquid very carefully as Tsuzuki dropped a white powder into the beaker on the table. Once it was in, the mixture sizzled, and Tsuzuki looked up and nodded.

The blonde-haired scientist took in a few deep breaths before uncapping the vial, and pouring it in. at first, smoke started to rise from the beaker, just like it had done in the other, failed, experiments, but then, it did something completely different. It started to bubble on it own, and turned a light shade of green. Two pairs of eyes opened wide, and the men turned to each other.

"Did we…"

"Uh…huh."

There was a long pause of silence before the two men broke into tears and hugs.

"I can't believe it's finally done!!"

"I know!! We've worked SO hard for this, and now it can all be over! The kid can go back to his normal self!"

At the mention of Hisoka, Tsuzuki stopped and let go of Watari. When the man went silent, Watari blinked.

"Tsuzuki? What's wrong?"

"It's… nothing."

"Tsuzuki…" The blonde set a firm hand on his shoulder. And shook his head. "I know you're bonding with him, and you've gotten used to his situation, but it's just not how he's supposed to be. And even more-"

"I know…" Finally, he looked up, smiling and looking relieved. "I'm just excited that he doesn't have to be in danger, anymore! And I'll finally get my partner back to normal!"

Both of them were overjoyed, but because they were so happy, neither of them were prepared for the ringing of Tsuzuki's cell phone.


	6. Chapter 6

Time stood still. The phone rang and rang, but the panicky boy on the other line wasn't receiving any answer. Three rings, four rings, six… why wasn't Tsuzuki answering him! Looking down at the crying child in his arms, Hijiri became even more alarmed and worried. Why, Tsuzuki…? WHY?

Suddenly, there was a knock at his door, and a deep booming voice was calling for him. No… maybe not for him. Maybe for…

Without hanging up, Hijiri dropped the phone and ran to unlock the door. At first, his fingers wouldn't obey him, and he started to have trouble in working the lock. For a brief moment, he hoped Tsuzuki would just knock the stupid thing in, but at the last moment, the door lock clicked, and the door was pushed open towards him.

Right in front of him stood two very worn out individuals- one with matted, untrimmed brown locks and circles under his eyes, and another with wild, 'omg it's gonna eat me' curls and glasses. Both of them looked as though they would collapse, but they couldn't do that now, not when…

"H-Hijiri… is Hisoka okay?!"

"Tsuzuki… I-I don't know! I was only out of the room for a moment, and-!"

Tsuzuki looked down at his partner in amazement, only to find his body growing. He wasn't 4 years old anymore… instead, he looked to be back at 7 or so, but again, he was already starting to regress… It was simply amazing…and unusual. Was the mixture the boy was exposed to only temporary? Watari sighed deeply- both in relief, and in exasperation. Once again, he worked so hard for almost nothing. However, even though none of them saw this coming, they wanted to make sure he wouldn't simply regress again and again like that. They had to put the potion to use.

Hijiri knelt down on the floor and handed Hisoka over gently. Tsuzuki rested the boy against him and lightly lifted his chin as he brought the serum to the boy's lips. There, though, he paused. Was this really what he wanted? Watari had not been mistaken before, and he had read Tsuzuki's feelings well. Tsuzuki had never before been so attached to his partner… Hisoka actually liked him! As a kid, only… once he was returned to his usual self, the silence would return, as would the hard looks and sharp words…

Closing his eyes, he gave up, however. Hisoka was Hisoka, and he still would give anything to get him back. Even if the boy was mad at him and yell and scold…he was Hisoka, and Tsuzuki desperately missed him. So, tipping the vial slightly upward, a light enveloped the younger shinigami, and that was it. He did the right thing…right?

- - - - -

Several hours had passed since he'd been at Hijiri's and Tsuzuki was absolutely exhausted! Over the past week or so, he had managed to get very little sleep, and it was finally taking it's toll on the elder shinigami. If it wasn't his alarm waking him up, it was someone at the ministry asking about Hisoka, the need to do something for some reason, or the boy, himself, wanting some company. Taking care of a child was something he definitely didn't have the stamina for!

Although… he didn't mind it in the least, really. Childcare was something he never thought he would have to face, or get the chance to enjoy, but he did… and he loved almost every minute of it. it was like having a little brother, or having a son… something wonderful, and even more so the harder it got. How strange a thought, he mused…

How wonderful. He was musing… no, he'd simply woken up yet again. Even then, when he had no distractions whatsoever, he still couldn't stay asleep! What did he have to do? What did he need…

"'Suki…'Suki?"

No… not again. _Hisoka_, he thought, …_Hisoka, let me sleep. 'Suki is tired now! Le me…_But wait. Not Hisoka. How could it be him, when he and Watari had returned the boy to normal? But, something was, indeed, shaking him, lightly. At least, it was a minute ago. Now, there was seemingly nothing there. Confused, and still unable to sleep, Tsuzuki sighed and closes his eyes. His numbing hand snaked out from under his pillow and flexed a few times. He had a bad habit of falling asleep on his stomach, and that meant his hands went right under his head. It was annoying, and yet unconscious.

Still, he tried to ignore that and get back to sleep. However, he was, again, stopped.

"'Suki…"

no, he hadn't hallucinated that voice, or the sudden, soft pressure on his now-exposed hand… it was real. Someone was calling him, but it wasn't the tiny, nasally voice he had become so accustomed to hearing. Instead, it was somewhat deeper… he expected that voice to be harsh and tense, but no… it was very soft, and kind. Could it be… Slowly, Tsuzuki turned his head to the side, he was so very surprised…

Hisoka was kneeling at the side of his bed, Tsuzuki's own bed, in his own house… Why was he there? Usually, Hisoka felt uncomfortable being at other people's houses so late at night, but there he was! And not only that… his soft little hands were placed on top of Tsuzuki's as his little head of sandy brown hair was lying atop the covers near them. Tsuzuki hadn't realized his eyes were so wide… he was simply surprised and mesmerized by the glowing emerald eyes staring at him. Finally, though, Tsuzuki had to inquire.

"Hisoka… what…?"

But the boy shook his little head at him. Lightly… very lightly in face- almost too small to be seen- Hisoka smiled at him.

"Thank you… for trying so hard. For me."

And from that instant, both of them knew it was going to be different… at least a little. Because Hisoka learned to smile!

Owari. NO YAOI


End file.
